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Westside Murals Tour

The Contemporary at Blue Star, in collaboration with San Anto Cultural Arts, is thrilled to offer walking tours of the vibrant murals scattered across San Antonio’s Westside. Participants will have the chance to view some of these stunning murals and public art pieces, created by both youth and adult residents of San Antonio’s historic Westside through San Anto Cultural Arts’ mural program. Additionally, the event will explore the history of San Anto Cultural Arts, its programs, and its ongoing impact in the Westside community.

Participants meet at San Anto Cultural Arts: 2120 El Paso St, San Antonio, TX 78207. Please make a reservation using the link below. Due to limited space, registration is required.

“Barrio Wellness” mural by Angel Hernandez, San Anto Cultural Arts Center. Photo by Clint Datchuk, Courtesy of San Antonio Magazine.

Westside Murals Tour

The Contemporary at Blue Star, in collaboration with San Anto Cultural Arts, is thrilled to offer walking tours of the vibrant murals scattered across San Antonio’s Westside. Participants will have the chance to view some of these stunning murals and public art pieces, created by both youth and adult residents of San Antonio’s historic Westside through San Anto Cultural Arts’ mural program. Additionally, the event will explore the history of San Anto Cultural Arts, its programs, and its ongoing impact in the Westside community.

Participants meet at San Anto Cultural Arts: 2120 El Paso St, San Antonio, TX 78207. Please make a reservation using the link below. Due to limited space, registration is required.

“Barrio Wellness” mural by Angel Hernandez, San Anto Cultural Arts Center. Photo by Clint Datchuk, Courtesy of San Antonio Magazine.

“Artist plática on Citlali: Cuando Eramos Sanos” and “Food as Healing” Painting Workshop

Join the Contemporary and artist Debora Kuetzpal Vasquez, in a plática discussing her work in our current exhibition, Xicanx: Dreamers + Changemakers | Soñadores + creadores del cambio. The day will focus on Citlali La XicanX Superhero: Cuando Eramos Sanos (When We Were Healthy), Las Siete Guerrilleras (Seven Warrior Foods), and healing practices passed down through Xicanx families. The platica is followed by a painting workshop centered on food as healing.

The artist plática will take place from 1–1:45pm and will be followed by the painting workshop from 2–3:30pm. Due to limited space, registration for the workshop is required. Workshop participants will receive a pre-traced canvas with one of the siete guerrilleras. Materials and food will be provided.

About the artist

Debora Kuetzpal Vasquez identifies as a home girl from San Anto, a multimedia XicanX feminist artivist. Observing the Chicano Movement through the lens of a child has shaped her life, work, and the creation of her cartoon character, Citlali, La XicanX Superhero. She is a descendent from a long line of curanderas (native healers), but her method of healing is through her art, which she has practiced for over 15 years. Kuetzpal is a mujerista interested in a feminist economy. She operates several businesses connected to the arts. She offers students and the community a XicanX mujerista perspective and way to economic sustainability in the arts, as she believes in teaching students how to make a livelihood from their art. She obtained a BA from Texas Woman’s University in Denton, and an MFA from the University of Wisconsin in Madison. She studied painting at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and received a certificate in traditional culture from Universidad Nahuatl in Ocotepec, Mexico.

Debora Kueztpal Vasquez, Citlatli: Cuando Eramos Sanos, 2012.

Big Give: Westside Lotería Night

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Celebrate our exhibition, Xicanx: Dreamers + Changemakers | Soñadores + Creadores del Cambio, and fund a bus during the Big Give at our Westside Lotería Night! The Big Give is a 24-hour fundraising event hosted by the Nonprofit Council, connecting nonprofits, like the Contemporary, in south central Texas with new and existing donors.

Join us for an evening of Westside Lotería, a game created by Xicanx featured artist Juan Miguel Ramos. This special event gives you a chance to win incredible art prizes from Xicanx artists while helping fund bus transportation for school tours and visits to the Contemporary.

Pay what you can at the door (suggested donation: $5) to get your card and join the game. All are welcome! We look forward to seeing you there and making a difference together!

Can’t make it? You can still support us by helping is spread the word or by donating directly to our Big Give page, located here.

Photo by Bria Woods.

Coffee Break at the Contemporary

In celebration of Xicanx Month our current exhibition, Xicanx: Dreamers + Changemakers | Soñadores + creadores del cambio, join us for a morning of coffee and contemporary art! Savor the rich flavors of café de olla and pan dulce as you mingle with fellow art enthusiasts. View all four of our current exhibitions and take the opportunity to screen print your very own Xicanx tote bag. It’s the perfect way to kickstart your Friday with creativity, culture, and community.

+ This event is free and open to the public

+ RSVP Here

 

Visitors during our June 2024 First Friday opening. Photo by Francisco Cortes.

Xicanx Symposium

Join the Contemporary in a two-day weekend symposium of programs and events inspired by Xicanx: Dreamers + Changemakers. This program runs in conjunction with Xicanx month, a city-wide celebration of Xicanx art and culture. This event is free, but registration is required for each program. Educators can receive up to 8 hours of CPE credits for this event. For details contact our Education and Programs Manager at juan@contemporarysa.org.

The symposium will take place from 10am–2pm each day. You can register for all or some symposium events on either day. To learn more about each event and to register, scroll down this page. When you’re ready to sign up, click the registration link for the day(s) you’d like to attend. You will be able to make your symposium event selections on the second page of the registration form. Email us with any questions or concerns!

Xicanx: Dreamers + Changemakers Soñadores + creadores del cambio, installation view, 2024. Photo by Beth Devillier.

Contemporary for All | Subverted sacred Altars and politics of the He(ART)

Please join us for a performative platica for children of all ages and a gallery/installation walk through, in observance of Pride month and honoring LGBTQ+ families. This conversation will take place in a “safe BRAVE space,” a Rasquachismo-informed setting that serves as a theatrical platform for poetry and social commentary, observed by a self-identified rainbow elder David Zamora Casas reminiscing through innocent, youthful childhood eyes.

 

+ This event is free and open to everyone

+ Register Here

Two people sitting on chairs, looking at a horizontal screen of a man.

Installation view of Davíd Zamora Casas's artwork on view as part of the "Xicanx: Dreamers + Changemakers | Soñadores + creadores del cambio." Photo by Bria Woods.

Novel Ideas Art Book Fair

Fair dates and times
Friday, August 2, 2024,  5pm-9pm
Saturday, August 3, 2024,  12pm-4pm

The Contemporary at Blue Star is pleased to announce the return of the Novel Ideas Art Book Fair. Established in 2020 Novel Ideas is aimed at highlighting and connecting the amazing artists in our region and beyond who utilize books and print based materials as their medium and share their work. Also included are publishers and presses producing artists’ books, monographs and related publications.  Novel Ideas features artists’ books, monographs, zines, printed ephemera, and more.

The fair will happen in the Contemporary’s newly renovated Education Space, right next-door to our exhibition galleries. This event is free and open to the public!

 

Canta Cuentos | Storytime Reading with Ceiba Ili

Music, storytelling, and movement come together in this family program. Join the Contemporary in a morning of guided children’s reading and light movement exercise for young visitors. This free event is perfect for children ages 2-5.

About the Presenter
Ceiba ili is a Cultural Educator and Musician from Honduras who skillfully incorporates indigenous instruments and languages into her music. Her work bridges the worlds of migrant communities, indigenous rights, and promotes environmental justice.

+ Register Here

Children reading books made out of fabric.

Taco Talk with Jill Baird and Greta de León

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Join the Contemporary and the curators of  Xicanx: Dreamers + Changemakers | Soñadores y creadores del cambio, Jill Baird + Greta de León, for an exhibition walkthrough.

The artists in Xicanx, as the title suggests, are dreamers and changemakers. Of Mexican-American origin, they self-identify as Xicanx, a term that crosses national borders and gender lines to encompass the Chicano people’s multi-generational experiences of social difference. These artists are part of a rich tradition of combining visual art and activism. Xicanx was originally presented by the Museum of Anthropology (MOA) in Canada, and The Americas Research Network (ARENET).

Breakfast tacos and coffee will be provided. This event is free and open to the public.

Alejandro Diaz, "Make Tacos Not War," 2007. Neon on clear plexiglass | ​​Neón sobre plexiglás transparente. Photo courtesy of the artist | Imagen cortesía del artista.